Gamification Enhances Treatment Effectiveness

The effectiveness of some treatments can sometimes be defined only after sustained use, calling innovators to develop support mechanisms to ensure patients adhere to their treatments. Multiplica aims to use gamify principles to spearhead innovation in adherence to treatment.

By helping clients connect with their audience, pharmaceutical companies are able to create value propositions for specific segments, achieving a true impact for their treatments.

“We help clients define their digital roadmap so that they can get the most out of their solutions according to their objectives and priorities,” said David Boronat, President of Multiplica.

Technology has been an ally for providers throughout this journey, as several companies support their treatments with apps to remind patients to take their medicines on time. However, poorly designed strategies are unlikely to have benefit patients. “A few months ago, a large pharmaceutical launched a platform for patients of a very specific condition. It spent around MX$4 million (US$200,000) and by the fourth month of use, 100 percent of the users had dropped out of the platform,” explains Alejandro Ruiz. Health Industry Global Head of Multiplica. “Many companies, especially in the health sector, launch digital projects without knowing and understanding the users, their context nor if the solution will solve their problem.”

To truly understand patients, companies need to empower patients and help them understand how to take care of their own health. According to WHO, by empowering patients, they are more likely to undertake actions that benefit them.  

The search for effective strategies to empower patients has led the industry to try innovative approaches, such as gamifying healthcare through interactive videos and virtual and augmented reality, among other tools. This approach has improved adherence to treatments, since patients find a more playful and immediate purpose for their effort. Studies on patients who received a transplant show that 50 percent of them forget or stop taking their medications, which puts the transplanted organ and their health at high risk.

Thanks to the use of digital analytics for monitoring, doctors and laboratories can better understand the habits of these patients and predict their behavior. In addition, the incorporation of AI allows users to create alerts and intelligent notifications relevant to them, which helps them advance in their process.

In Argentina and Chile, institutes dedicated to the coordination of organ transplants created a platform that allows young people and children who received a transplant to acquire healthier habits. The project was born with a clear challenge: to create digital experiences for pediatric patients who have undergone an organ transplant. Considering the particularities of the segment, the project sought to create a playful experience available through mobile devices and based on gamification techniques that reward young users for remembering to take their medication. The project aimed to help them create healthy habits to take care of themselves in the long term.

Each user had an avatar that allowed them to identify emotionally to carry out missions in a game. The project observed that the addition of a "character" changed whether or not the treatment was followed by allowing the patient to identify with the avatar. The project promoted adherence to therapies and monitored stress and emotions.

Main results of the study were:

1. Empowerment of transplant patients through the creation of an avatar that motivates them to lead a healthier lifestyle and take their medications.
2. Creation of the guardian figure who could be a family member or a doctor with access to the app's data to track treatment.
3. Scalable project to other regions: although the project was born with a focus on Argentina and Chile, it has the capacity to expand to other Latin American countries.

Through gamification, Multiplica is helping clients in pharmaceutical laboratories to increase adherence to treatments. The company has created numerous relevant experiences for the pharmaceutical industry, with clients such as Grifols, Almirall, Novartis, Lilly and Amgen. Multiplica harnesses knowledge obtained through data, analysis and AI to drive new ways of connecting and interacting pharmaceutical companies with their stakeholders.

“The pharmaceutical industry has shown significant interest in joining the digital transformation through our solutions,” explains Boronat, “but that is because when it comes to planning projects, we must be clear on the KPIs we want to impact.” From a quantitative perspective, Multiplica projects generally revolve around conversion issues, pushing life and value and reducing customer acquisition costs. “From a qualitative point of view, we have created a methodology called Relevant Experience Index, which evaluates our clients' digital experience,” said Boronat.

Are you ready to engage? Read more about Multiplica and their solutions for this industry in the following articles.